


Exaggeration

by miss_aligned



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Mass Effect 3, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-12
Updated: 2016-06-12
Packaged: 2018-07-14 15:20:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7177163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miss_aligned/pseuds/miss_aligned
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With a rare quiet moment together, Shepard rather animatedly explains a mission he'd missed. It turns out the spark between them is still very much there.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Exaggeration

“This is why you called me in here?” Shepard asked, unable to hide the smile creeping its way across her lips.

“It’s not a _bad_ reason,” Kaidan responded, feigning offense. “Besides, this way I can make sure that you’re eating something. You forget sometimes.”

The Commander chuckled and blushed slightly, realizing that Kaidan still remembered the silly little details about her that few others had ever noticed. When she was too wrapped up in her work, she’d forget to eat. Constantly. He’d always been diligent about making sure she took care of herself when they were together so long ago. She realized as she sat down to the meager plate of reconstituted rations how much she’d missed everything about him.

The two sat and ate, staring out the window of the starboard observation deck and chatting pleasantly about antics of the crew and recent missions. It was work related, but it did help to lighten the mood a bit and get them both to relax. Ever since their date on the Citadel where they’d laid everything out and decided to rebuild what they’d once had, Shepard was happy. On one hand, she felt guilty for finding joy in the midst of the chaos the Reapers were causing, but on the other, she was overdue for one thing to go right in her life. If that one thing was Kaidan, then she was content.

All except for that ‘taking it slow’ thing he’d mentioned back at Apollo’s, anyway. Her feelings for him had never really wavered despite all that they’d been through, and it was the quiet moments like this that really drove her mad. She wanted him. All of him. But she respected his wishes about hoping to take things slow, too. It was quite the conundrum.

When they’d finished their meals and set the dishes aside, Shepard sat back on the couch with an appreciative sigh. She could feel the warmth of Kaidan’s arm as it rested behind her and she couldn’t seem to let go of the possibility of it wrapping closer around her. She wanted to curl around him and whisper sweet words in his ear about how she’d missed him. What Commander Shepard wanted, however, was not the priority. She wouldn’t force the issue if he wasn’t prepared.

That certainly didn’t mean she had to avoid having a little fun, though. A devilish smirk appeared on her face for only a moment before she composed herself and turned her head towards him.

“Have you ever been seduced by an Ardat-Yakshi?” She had to work to conceal the giddiness in her voice.

“What?” The Major tore his gaze from the stars beyond the window and focused instead on her. She could tell that he needed a moment to recall what the asari term meant, but ultimately he understood. “No, I think you’re the only one who can claim that. Well, the only one alive, anyway.”

“I wasn’t fully seduced, I suppose, but it was close. I never told you about it, did I?”

“No,” he quietly answered, shifting in his seat slightly. It seemed to be something about which he was both apprehensive and curious to hear.

“Her name was Morinth. Samara warned me that she was dangerous and told me of her usual patterns. I went in armed with nothing but the knowledge of the type of person that she found attractive. I was supposed to do everything I could to appear as that person and lure her out. Then Samara could take care of the rest.”

“Acting, huh? Given your endorsements for shops on the Citadel, I’m surprised she bought it,” Kaidan quipped.

“Very funny,” Shepard responded with a roll of her eyes and a shake of her head. “I played it all out just fine, thank you. Turns out her type wasn’t that far off from this fine specimen you see before you now.”

“I’m sure,” Kaidan said with an appreciative smile.

“Anyway, I agreed to leave the club and head back to her apartment, and I’ll be honest, I thought I was going to die there. It was beautiful, but I certainly got strange vibes from the place. At one point, the two of us were sitting on the couch sort of like this,” Shepard explained as she waved her hand at the way the pair of them were situated at that moment.

Kaidan was watching her closely, no doubt interested in how the story panned out.

“I got her talking about music and art, and she was getting all hot and bothered.” A dangerous look crossed the commander’s features, mimicking rather accurately the expression Morinth had sported in the heat of the moment. She turned toward Kaidan and leaned in close, trying to ignore his flushed skin before it drove her mad.

A wicked smile crept across her lips once more, visible to him this time around. She heard his sharp intake of breath as she took hold of his collar and slowly pulled him closer. Of course, this wasn’t exactly how it had played out, but stories were more fun with a bit of exaggeration. Her free hand swept across the back of his head and traced along his jaw as she shifted her body until she was nearly sitting in his lap. Her tone was quiet and low as she stared at his lips, not daring to look in his eyes for fear of losing what little control she had. “She told me to close my eyes and listen to the sound of her voice.”

She felt Kaidan’s arm shift off of the couch and wind around her waist. He certainly seemed to be enjoying the story just as much as she enjoyed providing this particular rendition.

Shepard lowered her head, her lips nearly touching his, still holding him securely in her grasp. Heat was radiating from him now, threatening her resolve. “I almost gave in to her,” she whispered, her breath mingling with his.

She moved slightly, running her free hand through his hair and cradling the back of his neck as she shifted her head beside his so that her words would make their way directly into his ear. “But Samara appeared in the nick of time.”

Kaidan froze in her grasp, not daring to breathe or respond. His breath had hitched in his throat and she could feel his heart thundering in his chest, not unlike her own. Her smile widened as she recognized that she was dearly going to pay for this one later, but she’d probably enjoy every moment of it.

“I should go.”

He exhaled and shook his head as she released him, planting a peck on his cheek as she withdrew. It was good to know that she still had an effect on him after all this time.

“Oh no you don’t,” he responded, his arm holding fast around her waist as the other snaked around her back and pressed her forward until he captured her lips with his own. It began as a hungry, heated gesture, but quickly melted into a soft, passionate, appreciative embrace that spoke volumes where words had failed them both. Her heart fluttered and ached all at the same time. She’d missed him so much that it hurt.

“Now you can go,” he muttered as he withdrew and released his firm hold on her, cheeks flushed and amusement twinkling in his eyes. “Also, you’re evil.”.

“I never claimed to be good, Major,” she answered with a wicked smirk, playing off her own lightheaded condition from the unexpected contact. She gathered up the dishes and prepared to take them back to the mess. She could almost feel the indecision Kaidan was experiencing in that moment, but planned to leave before he could break his promise to himself. Teasing was all in good fun, but she had no intention of taking it too far or letting him jump into anything too early. “Thanks for dinner. We should do it again sometime.”

He groaned as he watched her leave, but she responded with a wink and smile, feigning innocence.


End file.
